Jen Hubley Luckwaldt writes about work-life balance, stress management, and other topics relating to what makes us happy at work. A full-time freelancer, she deals with stress by blurring the lines between life and work to the point where the two spheres are barely separate. The happiest day of her career was when scientists proved that looking at pictures of cute animals makes us more productive.

The sound you heard yesterday was a cry of anguish going up in the PayScale offices, as the Seahawks lost the Super Bowl at the last possible moment. Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell called a slant pass that resulted in quarterback Russell Wilson throwing an interception, giving the game to the Patriots ... and spurring a lot of not-even-Monday-morning quarterbacking by critics eager to point the finger at coach Pete Carroll. Carroll's response shows us a lot about how to handle bad calls in our own working life.

The Seattle-based staff of PayScale is pretty excited about Sunday's big game, when the Seahawks will face off against the Patriots in Arizona. But even if you're not a Seahawks fan, chances are that you appreciate their running back, Marshawn Lynch, nicknamed "Beast Mode" for his aggressive style on the field. Off the field, he's become possibly the most quotable player of all time -- while insisting that he's boycotting media. Witness yesterday's press conference, where Lynch said nothing but "I'm just here so I won't get fined." Twenty-nine times.

No matter how many 200,000-plus job reports the Bureau of Labor Statistics cranks out, the economy is a long way from supporting the decision to quit your job on a whim. But, there are circumstances under which an accelerated plan of departure makes sense. If any of these conditions exist at your job, it's time to start buffing up your resume and calling old co-workers for coffee dates.

With today's emphasis on social media, it's easy to forget about longform internet self-expression. However, blogging is a great way to build and demonstrate your expertise in your industry, especially if you're just starting out or contemplating a shift into a new role. Here's how to use the great granddaddy of Twitter and Instagram for professional gain -- and do it the right way.

To compile the recently issued Salary Negotiation Guide, PayScale asked 31,000 people whether they'd ever negotiated their salary. Fifty-seven percent said they had not. Given that not negotiating salary can cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars over the course of a lifetime -- and that 75 percent of people who ask get at least some kind of salary bump -- it obviously makes sense to hit the bargaining table before you accept a new job offer or let your annual review go by without initiating a discussion about money. Still reluctant? Arm yourself with the facts.

What's the biggest mistake you've made in your career? If you're like most of us, it's not learning from your other errors. This week's roundup looks at what makes moguls like Mark Zuckerberg different from the average person, how exercise can help your career, and whether or not layoffs are as bad for companies as they are for workers.

No one likes negative feedback -- either receiving it, or giving it. In fact, we might hate giving constructive criticism more than getting it; leadership development researchers Jack Zenger and Joseph Folkman found that while 92 percent of respondents to a survey valued corrective feedback, most managers felt uncomfortable giving it. Comfort levels aside, it's obviously unlikely for performance to spontaneously improve, without direction from leaders. So what can you do, as a manager, to offer negative feedback that leads to positive results?

"The shadow of crisis has passed," said President Obama, in last night's State of the Union address. "And the state of the union is strong." While receiving standing ovations for job numbers (and getting in an ad-libbed dig at Republicans about winning the presidency), Obama outlined a vision for the country that focused on middle-class growth.

If you could go back in time and give your younger self career advice, what's the one thing you'd say? For some, it would be to negotiate a higher salary or start investing more heavily in a 401k. Others might go all the way back to college and follow their dreams -- or pick a career with a better occupational outlook, and fund their personal projects that way.